Queen - Thank God It's Christmas
Rock band Queen are acknowledged as one of the world's biggest music acts, with the golden era of their career spanning over two decades. Best known for their 1975 classic Bohemian Rhapsody, the band would actually gain a whole new lease of life thanks to their blistering performance at 1985's Live Aid concert, so this Christmas single catches them in the calm before the storm. Written by drummer Roger Taylor and guitarist Brian May, Thank God It's Christmas combines the band's anthemic abilities with a tender seasonal element. With an arrangement mainly reliant on echoing staccato percussion and synth pads, the song is brought to life by Freddie Mercury's soaring vocals—with a little help from sleigh bells! The sparse arrangement is bolstered by the backing harmonies from the other band members, though John Deacon's bass and Brian May's guitar make their presence known as the track continues. It does not contain much in the way of the usual Christmas single adornments, but its starkness holds a certain appeal for the wintry climes of the season. There were actually two tracks in contention for the band's 1984 Christmas single; this single, which was of course the victor, and a Brian May composition, I Dream of Christmas—though May later reused the track as a 1987 single for his partner Anita Dobson.
Written by: Roger Taylor & Brian May
Produced by: Queen & Reinhold Mack
EMI Records QUEEN 5 / #21
From my Kindle book "80s UK Christmas Singles" -- a bargain at 99p!
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